Apex City... the culmination of human achievement. The gleaming megopolis of the future, a melting pot of all races and nations and creeds across the globe. Home to those who might not find it elsewhere, those who want to make it big, those who want to make a difference, and, of course, those who call themselves heroes. Perhaps, to those living in the real world, the people of Apex City are dreamers and unpoliced vagrants. But to the people who live there? There’s no place like it, anywhere in the world.
Generations of superheroes and villains alike stretch out behind you. The weight of expectation and reality are heavy on your shoulders. But like they say - the spearheads of change are the youth. That’s you. Young, inexperienced, and most importantly? You’re gonna change the world.

I’m a complete newbie here so I don’t know how it all works yet but bear with me. I’ve been playing a lot of MASKS: A new generation, and I love the aesthetic presented within. Think along the lines of Teen Titans, Young Justice, My Hero Academia, Ms Marvel, Runaways, Miles Morales’ Spider-Man, Heroman, etc. Low stakes combat, high stakes drama, with a heavy focus on teenagers. So, I want to rp out some teen superheroes!

I do not yet have an set specific plots or lore planned out, because I enjoy coming up with that together and during play. I will, however, say that it all has to fit within the following criteria:

Characters must be teens/young adults of middle school - college age at a minimum and maximum

Death or irreversible injuries are not on the table right now, either for the PCs or for bad guys

the tone can be completely goofy or following more serious, real world problems, but should never go darker than what is allowed to be shown in aforementioned cartoons and comics

Playing NPCs is an obvious must, and each PC will have at least one important NPC which the other player gets to control, for balancing reasons and drama outside of the super team itself

They’re teens! They make stupid mistakes, they defy authority, they get their asses kicked and kick some ass in return. They fight, they make up, they face the consequences of their actions all while being told who they should be and what they should do by well meaning adults. They’re struggling with self identity and relationships just as much, if not more, than they are with their heroic life

Below I have some vague concepts of plot lines I would like to follow - but they’re only a guideline! I’m willing to take suggestions for other plotlines so long as they have a definitive end goal we can feasibly reach together. And maybe, once that end goal has been reached, we might have enough steam to move on to a ‘season 2’!

Hayden Andrews, aka The Harvester, is a normal, superpowered teen, except he’s from the 80s, stranded in a futuristic world he isn’t used to, and to top it off, his future self is a supervillain! Will he be able to rewrite the course of history (Er, future) and stop himself from becoming a menace? Will he ever make it back home? Can the future even be rewritten...?

Orion Stanton isn’t like other boys. He’s actually a seven foot tall demon from outer space. But right now, he’s just an ordinary teen living under the protection of superpowered governmental agency SIDA. And now he has a team he’s gotta work with, regardless of how well they get along, and if he refuses, he won’t ever be able to go outside without supervision again! WIll they be able to work together, or is Orion destined to a life under watchful scrutiny?

Maria Cortez is a born villain. She’s just not a very good one. That’s why she moonlights as the mysterious masked hero, Shortcircuit. She’s not particularly good at that, either, but better to be a tryhard hero than a failure of a villain, right? Will she be able to keep her true identity a secret from her team, and the city at large? Or will her parents find out about her stint at heroism and give her hell?

If you’re into the indie youth scene, you may recognise the name Indy Haugen. Lead guitarist and vocalist of the underground band The Dauntless. Disgraced from the scene after it came out she was secretly using her powers of persuasion to trick everyone into liking her music more than maybe they should have. Well, now she’s trying to clear her name and reach back out to her audience, but this time, as a bona fide superhero! Will she redeem herself in the eyes of her fans? Or is this just another ploy at stardom?

Ocelot, previously a captive-bred jaguar, now injected with human level intellect and body structure, is struggling to find their own in a world which doesn’t seem catered for them. Apex City is full of human stuff from all walks of life, powered or not, mutant or alien, time travellers and robots, but Ocelot inhabits this grey space. Are they animal? Or human? Or a mutant? Or something completely new? Maybe, with the help of a bunch of other misfits, they can find their place in the world at the fringes...

Billy Moore has only known fighting her whole life. Raised to fight, honed to perfection, crybernetically enhanced for maximum efficiency on the battlefield. Only, she ran away from the institute which made her, and joined an underground, and very illegal, superpowered fighting ring. It’s here where she’s got her first taste of defeat - and a hunger for more. More than this. And that something more might just be the team of vigilante heroes which busted her fighting ring and showed her there’s more to life than bloody knuckles and sponsor deals. But is she cut out for a life of heroics? And what will happen once the Institute decides they want her back...?

to note: these all share the same base ‘setting’, but are unconnected, so there’s no persistent lore or setting

not looking for daily posts but a couple times a week would be ideal! I have a busy schedule

if you read all of this, put a lil happy face at the end of your post

mixing and matching plots and/or characters is fine, the above are just guidelines. If you have a different idea for a plotline either dm me to brainstorm or just present it similarly to the above, with a title and everything

I am only really looking for one person to rp with, who is ok playing multiple characters. That said, I might be able to do a couple if there’s a tonne of interest or I can’t decide

not specifically looking for romance, though if ships occur naturally I’ll let them be, I’d rather focus on dynamics and teen relationships for now, and feel more comfortable with mxm or fxf romances anyway

Here’s a basic minimum template for anyone who wants to playName:Alias: (if relevant)Age:Short backstory: (things to include if relevant; maybe their family situation, what school they go to, when they got their powers, other important events, why they want to be part of this team/do heroics, etc)Powers: (and any weaknesses they may have to balance it out)Physical description: (feel free to include a costume, too! Pictures aren’t necessary)Stakes: (generally a “Will they...?” question, though it might be a “how?” question. Essentially sets up the main focus of the character, the dramatic tension, and where you as a player want to direct the story. Theoretically the end of the arc should happen when both characters’ stakes are being answered, for good or for bad)Important connection: (remember that I will be responsible for controlling this as an NPC, so be brief. Make it someone you’re likely to interact with in some way or another on a semi frequent basis, someone who will cause TENSION)Other important facts:
Examples of my own characters below.
[spoiler2=#83113C,#FFFFFF,Castellar,"Harvester"]Name: Hayden AndrewsAlias: The HarvesterAge: 16Short backstory: was born some time in the nebulous 70s, and started out as a sidekick to a C grade hero before becoming bonded with a symbiote which attached itself to his back and allowed him to strike out on his own as a superhero. Unfortunately, he accidentally got caught up in Dr Nefarious’ time machine and was flung into the present, where his future self has been corrupted by the symbiote inside his body. While upset about this for multiple reasons, he’s a little more upset that they cancelled his favourite show, the X-League. Powers:
symbiote.

He has an organism of mysterious origin embedded in his back which normally lays dormant, but can activate and spring forth four spindly arms, all which act independently. It may be more dangerous to him than he first thought, though...

with his extra limbs, he can climb walls and give himself a height advantage, in addition to using them as extra hands

honed reflexes.

while not at superhuman levels, he has slightly enhanced reflexes as a result of his symbiote’s fight or flight survival response.

Physical description: mixed race, his mother is black. Small and lean, with very fine features and light brown skin, dark brown eyes, and thick, almost blond hair. His symbiotic limbs give him a distinctly spiderlike appearance. His costume is mostly red-purple and neon pink, a rather dated tight suit with red tinted goggles. Overall, he looks more cute than threatening.Stakes: will he be able to change his own fate before he becomes his future self, or will he be forevermore destined to succumb to the symbiote?Important connection: his future self, who goes by the moniker Wolf Spider. Obviously a much larger, much bigger threat than the Harvester himself.Other important facts: there are a lot more mutants and sentient androids and all kind stuff of weird aliens running around Apex City than there were back in Hayden’s day. He’s constantly amazed by the world around him.[/spoiler2]

[spoiler2=#E43622,#FFFFFF,Castellar,"Orion Stanton"]Name: Orion StantonAlias: FallenAge: 18 earth yearsShort backstory: he fell to Earth as a baby, where he was quickly picked up by SIDA (Superpowered Intelligence and Defence Agency) and grew up as part of their system. His true form is that of a bulky, red skinned humanoid with horns and clawed feet, but SIDA gave him the ability to blend in with humans on the condition that he would not act out and endanger innocent lives. He’s taken that pretty seriously since. Orion enjoys taking orders and honing his skills, but longs for the time when he can go off on his own... which is why this hero gig is so important to get right. If he does it right, this might be his final test before he’s ready to step out into the real world.Powers:
shapeshifting.

Orion is able to convert his original form into his human form at will, though many of his powers do not carry over into his human form

inhuman strength.

he has the strength to lift his massive sword in one hand, even in human form. However, his human form lacks the endurance of his original form

space sword.

when he crashed to earth, he only thing he was holding was his sword, a massive thing with a blade of hardened light. In fact, he refuses to use any other weapon

Physical description: as a human: Orion is tall, around 6ft or so, with dusty brown hair kept swept back neatly under a cap, most often wearing SIDA uniforms or issued clothing. He is visibly well muscled with tanned skin, a strong nose, and a broad torso. His eyes, however, are pure white.
In his true form: he is well over 7ft tall, with deep red skin that seems to be growing into a carapace, nubby horns growing on his brow, clawed, digitigrade feet, and intimidatingly muscular arms. He has no hair at all. His teeth are surprisingly normal, and his eyes, as always, are pure white. Stakes: will he be able to prove he can work on a team with other people, or will he be trapped under SIDA’s watch forever?Important connection: Lt. Hawking, essentially a mother-like figure to Orion, the one who named him.Other important facts: he was named Orion after the constellation, obviously. He considers himself more human than not, but honestly has no idea where he comes from, and doesn’t really want or need to know. His story is more about growing up, and moving forward.
[/spoiler2]

[spoiler2=#BAEFF5,#000000,Castellar,"Shortcircuit"]Name: Maria CortezAlias: Shortcircuit (hero), Cortex (villain)Age: 17Short backstory: she was born to two villainous parents, fairly low level villains who instigated museum heists and that sort of thing. She’s always been expected to follow in their footsteps, although they allowed her a bit of reprieve during school to focus on her studies. Of course, she can’t let anyone know she’s from a family’s of villains. And then she decided, no, she’s too bad and too kind to be a villain, so she’ll try being a hero instead! But she’s bad at that, too, because she doesn’t want to seriously harm her parent’s business. So now she’s stuck between her three personas, and she doesn’t know which one is closer to the real her...Powers:
lightning intellect.

While not technically smarter than the next person, she is able to think and process quicker. She’s very good at equations. Very bad at good judgement.

electronic control.

she can sense the presence of nearby active electronic devices

by touch alone, she can overload any electronic device. With a bit more concentration, she can theoretically do this from a distance, but it takes more energy

she can also absorb electric charge from devices by touch, though it is a fairly inefficient way of intaking energy

Physical description: Hispanic, tall, dark haired and dark eyed with a long limbed figure and spindly hands. Always fidgeting. Her fingers and hands are covered with faint lightning scars from taking in too much electricity when she was younger. Her hero costume is silver and blue with lightning patterns down the side, long boots, and a full face helmet.Stakes: will she be able to keep her parallel lives separate from each other, and when they inevitably crash, will she hold on to her heroic identity?Important connection: her parents, Fabio and Stella Cortez, infamous villain pair.Other important facts: sometimes, she has to pretend to ‘catch’ herself, setting up elaborate tricks to make it seem like Cortex and Shortcircuit are two entirely different people. They’ve never been caught by eye witnesses together, though..
[/spoiler2]

[spoiler2=#E1BAF5,#000000,Castellar,"Trance"]Name: Indy HaugenAlias: TranceAge: 17Short backstory: indie trance-rock musician, born to two unpowered parents who vocally denounced superheroes all her childhood. As an outlet, she started out playing for fun in her garage and ended up producing an actual CD with help from a local radio station. She and her band prided themselves on their mundane, empowering lyrics. Then it came out that she was using her powers to secretly implant messages in her music, which critics called a cheap move to gain fame. After that, her band, The Dauntless, fell apart. Disgraced from the indie rock music scene, Indy has very recently turned her eyes to heroics in order to make use of her powers and clear her name.Powers:
suggestion.

through the power of her voice, she can place suggestions into the listener’s brain, sort of like a very low level hypnosis. While much harder to detect than actual mind control, if the listener is aware of her powers, they are much more likely to be able to resist. And since she’s kind of infamous now, well. They must also, obviously, be able to hear.

sonic control.

Indy can fine tune her own voice, projecting it up to a mile away, pushing people and things away from her, shattering nearby windows, setting off the neighbourhood dogs, or impersonate someone she knows with reasonable accuracy.

Physical description: short, doesn’t look athletic at all, and is probably always chosen last in sport class, has the side of her head shaved down in a severe style, and dyed purple. Wears contacts instead of glasses, and has a lip piercing which she refuses to take out except for school. Her hero costume is still in beta, but features a bright violet vest with gold trim, unecessarily gothic lace up boots, and an eye mask.Stakes: will she be able to clear her name and make up for tricking her fans, or has she ruined her career for good?Important connection: Brandon Bentley, bass, backup vocals, and the biggest driving force behind The Dauntless before Indy’s scandal.Other important facts: if you ask her to explain what trance-rock is, the result is simply indescribable and honestly leaves you with more questions than you began. To this day, nobody has an exact definition.
[/spoiler2]

[spoiler2=#F9F2CA,#000000,Castellar,"Ocelot"]Name: OcelotAlias: N/AAge: technically, 3 years since their transformation, but mentally, 15Short backstory: Ocelot was a jaguar born in captivity at an Apex City zoo, not knowing the wild or their natural habitat at all. At some point during their years as an animal, they were subject to tests and experiments of a new drug with supposed regenerative properties, but it all went haywire when they managed to escape their enclosure, knocking over the serum in the process and being covered in it. It gave them a newfound intelligence which they used to escape the zoo and run out onto the streets, where their body began to mutate into a bipedal form, and they became capable of human speech and thought. Now, they just live on the streets. Powers:
Jaguar physique.

they have the strength and speed of a jaguar, as well as their souped up physique. They could probably lift a car with a little effort, and can run on all fours for speed. They also have claws along their hands and feet.

Stealth.

they are a natural at hiding in the environment and moving without making a sound, even for their bulk

Regeneration.

because of the serum, they can regenerate wounds more quickly, at about double the usual rate, though they can’t heal from injuries they wouldn’t be able to otherwise

Cat speech.

they can understand the basic language of all felines, though the average housecat has a distinct dialect that differs greatly from that of a jaguar

Physical description: tall, 6 or 7 ft tall, and thick all over, covered in short fur with spotty patterns, and a tail. They have a jaguar head, but are capable of human speech, albeit accented. Their hands have also developed opposable thumbs, though their legs remain digitigrade. They can run on all fours, but it’ll never have the grace of a truly quadruped creature.Stakes: will they be able to find a place for themselves amongst humans?Important connection: Old man Darius, a homeless man who took Ocelot in during their initial years and taught them how to surviveOther important facts: doesn’t know much about being a jaguar, but also doesn’t know much about being a human. They’ve been tricked and manipulated before into using their powers for less than scrupulous reasons because of their naïveté.
[/spoiler2]

[spoiler2=#508161,#FFFFFF,Castellar,"Billy Moore"]Name: Billy MooreAlias: Billy the Kid, Subect 37Age: 18Short backstory: Billy has been like this for as long as she can remember, a creation of some cloning research station, trained to be the ultimate fighter. And it worked. Somewhat. After defecting from her agency a few years back, Billy found there was only one thing she was good at, and that was fighting. She quickly rose through the ranks, a dark horse, becoming popular enough to sign deals with shady corporations for her sponsorship, until the ring she was part of was busted by a couple of teen superheroes. Now, she’s realised that heroes are stronger than her, and she, also, wants to be strong. Strong and free.Powers:
Augmented limbs.

her limbs have all been augmented or replaced, giving her greater overall strength and punching power

she can also jump very high as a result of her cyborg legs

Warrior’s training

she’s been trained to be the perfect weapon - able to ignore pain, deal damage, and fight tirelessly. Unfortunately, this is mostly everything she knows

Clone.

she is a result of cloning technology. While not a perfect clone in the traditional sense, her cellular makeup was grown in a lab using someone’s existing tissues. As such, her DNA is essentially identical to her donors, and she is filled with identification markers and tracking devices for her prior creators to use

Physical description: unremarkable height, pale skin that’s covered in scars and bruises constantly, blonde hair cut dangerously short and hazel eyes that always seem to be analysing her surroundings. Her legs are fully robotic, with pistons to enable fast and strong movement, while her knuckles are permanently embedded with knuckle dusters. Sharp, angular, tough.Stakes: will she be able to leave behind her life of fighting, or well her past finally catch up to her, literally?Important connection: Dr Grant, one of Billy’s main sponsors who may not actually have the best in mind for her.Other important facts: she’s been difficult to track due to her underground antics, but by moving into the limelight and following the path of a hero, she’s more at risk of being found by those who made her. She doesn’t know this yet.
[/spoiler2]

Last edited by mochi on Fri Jul 27, 2018 2:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.

it certainly is weird, but is it bad? I guess that depends on whether you’re planning on playing up it’s weirdness. (It’s certainly not the weirdest superpower I’ve seen in comics, body elasticity always weirds me out a lil in honesty haha)

Eh, I like making weird characters. And how much the weirdness gets played up depends on other characters reactions, I guess. The reason she licks people is because its kinda like clairgustance, I guess... Basically she can get information about people and objects by licking them.

For the limitations of it I put "There isn't really any limitations to this, apart from the fact a lot of people do not take kindly to being licked for some reason." My character does not get why people don't like being licked.